You’ve created your innovative software and now want to attract a broader worldwide audience to start using it. But one of the most pressing questions you might face from your potential customers is “how many languages does your software support?”. So, don’t you think it’s the right time to translate your software into multiple languages?
In this article, we’ll be discussing what software translation is, how it’s essential for global expansion, who needs software translation services, and more. Continue reading to learn more.
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What is software translation?
Software translation refers to implementing a system that changes text or spoken content in a software product to fit the needs of users having different languages. This is the general definition of software translation. However, as a full service, it also extends to the translation of any support documents, marketing materials, app listing pages, and other related resources.
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The purpose of all this effort is to provide customers in each target language with a native user experience. Within the software itself, it brings increased user engagement, a key strategy to maximize recurring revenue. Beyond the software itself, this helps software companies to achieve better customer satisfaction and support.
Software translation is vital for global expansion
Thanks to globalization, all companies are able to access local markets around the world. Their business is not confined to one but multiple countries now. So, companies have a global working environment in this modern age with different multinational teams working for them.
Although English holds the status of a business language around the globe, not all people can speak and understand it. Chances are, you local software users would not be able to operate your software efficiently due to poor English fluency.
For instance, you’re entering the Philippines to enhance your global reach and impact. This won’t bring benefits if you leave out filipino translation services – because two-thirds of the people in the Philippines speak Filipino. Even if all their inhabitants understand your software’s language at some level, you won’t be able to create long-lasting business relationships. Because the studies show that people like to buy or use products that communicate to them in their local language.
The same happens with any other market you want to expand into. Your successful entry will depend on whether you opted for software translation to speak to your users in their language. If your software is unable to speak to customers like a native, this means it’s not suitable for that specific market and audience. As a result, you risk losing many lucrative business opportunities.
On the other hand, if you get your software adapted to multiple different languages, you will have the opportunity to sell in any part of the world. Since the internet has eliminated all borders, you’ll be able to unlock global sales and fuel your global aspirations easily.
Who needs software translation?
Any global software company will require software translation. It may deal with SaaS products, apps, games, electronics, automotive, medical device manufacturing, and more. If you’re a company that wants to release new software products in foreign geographies, then you’re a good candidate for professional software translation.
The two areas where software translation is high in demand are cloud computing and gaming. Cloud computing has allowed customers to buy and use software products without requiring on-site implementation or any additional hardware. The modern era of cloud computing has also given birth to a new sub-industry which is Software as a Service or SaaS. In the SaaS industry, customers would subscribe to a product and pay monthly fees on a recurring basis. In order to keep customers engaged, subscribed, and retained to their software, SaaS companies must provide them with impeccable and personalized customer experience. This is where software translation starts to play its role.
The gaming sector is also booming. There are more than 3 billion gamers who can download your games from any corner of the world. This requires you to translate your gaming software with gaming translation services. As with SaaS translation, this will help to maximize customer retention, subscription, and recurring revenue.
Software translation vs. software localization
It’s to be noted that software translation is one part of software localization. These two terms are different, yet closely related to each other. Therefore, we would like to briefly explain the difference between the two.
The scope of software translation is limited to the translation of text or any audio elements in software products. From the source language to the target language(s).
However, software localization goes beyond the translation of text and audio present in the software. You can think of software localization as translation plus the adaptation of various other elements by keeping in mind the cultural constraints of each target market. For instance, it deals with text expansion or contraction that occurs during content translation between different languages. If the text expands, it can break the entire UI layout because the elements’ size will change. That’s why an effective software localization strategy becomes important to deal with such software issues.
Technically speaking, software translation does not always require a localization strategy to carry it out. However, this is something not advisable. As far as software localization is concerned, it involves translation as an important part. Thus, software localization can’t be performed without performing the translation.